Don't Miss Out.

Matthew 25:14-30
14 "Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his property to them. 15 To one he gave five talents of money, to another two talents, and to another one talent, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. 16 The man who had received the five talents went at once and put his money to work and gained five more. 17 So also, the one with the two talents gained two more. 18 But the man who had received the one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master's money.
19 "After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. 20 The man who had received the five talents brought the other five. 'Master,' he said, 'you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.'
21 "His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'
22 "The man with the two talents also came. 'Master,' he said, 'you entrusted me with two talents; see, I have gained two more.'
23 "His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'
24 "Then the man who had received the one talent came. 'Master,' he said, 'I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25 So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.'
26 "His master replied, 'You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? 27 Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.
28" 'Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents. 29 For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. 30 And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'

First of all, a talent is equivalent to more than one thousand dollars! In this parable, Jesus describes a man who plans to be away for a long period of time. Thus, he asks his servants to watch over his money while he is away. The money gets divided among the three servants who were present. The first two went on to invest their money; they were able to double it before the man returned. On the other hand, the third servant was afraid to take a gamble. After all, he might lose the money. He decided to hide the money until the man came home.

When the man returned home, he was pleased at what he saw. He was now richer! He only thought it was wise to put them in control of other things. The third servant was deemed lazy and evil, however, because he wasted his time and missed an opportunity. This man was to never be put in charge of the man's money again.

The key message to take with you today is that God has blessed us and expects us to use our gifts to initiate blessings or even introduce Christ in someone else's life. It's never good to miss out on this!

Think about how God has blessed you and how you can use that to make an impact on others. Is there any part of it that feels like a risk?